The term metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) has been proposed based on a redefinition of the nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) criteria. Our study aimed to address the knowledge gap by comparing the diagnostic accuracy of MAFLD and NAFLD criteria in identifying significant fibrosis among patients with hepatic steatosis. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 2626 patients with hepatic steatosis treated at Beijing Ditan Hospital between January 2009 and December 2022. Patients with viral hepatitis were excluded. Significant fibrosis was defined as a Meta-analysis of Histological Data in Viral Hepatitis (METAVIR) score F ≥ 2. MAFLD and NAFLD were diagnosed in 478 and 428 patients, respectively. Clinicopathological characteristics were compared between the MAFLD+ NAFLD- group (patients who met the criteria for MAFLD but not NAFLD) and MAFLD- NAFLD+ group (patients who met the criteria for NAFLD but not MAFLD). A total of 743 patients with histologically verified hepatic steatosis were analyzed. The MAFLD+ NAFLD- group comprised 163 (21.9%) and the MAFLD- NAFLD+ group comprised 113 (15.2%) patients. Patients in the MAFLD+ NAFLD- group were older and more likely to be male and had higher body mass index and liver stiffness levels than those in the MAFLD- NAFLD+ group. The prevalence of significant fibrosis was higher in the MAFLD+ NAFLD- group than in the MAFLD- NAFLD+ group (43.6% vs 15.9%, P < .001). The MAFLD criteria may be a better indicator of fibrosis than the NAFLD criteria. Fibrosis in patients with MAFLD can be determined by metabolic disorders, not excessive alcohol consumption.